-...~ em News IA Contributing Editors Emmanuel Fritsch, University of Nantes, CNRS, Team 6502, Institut des Matériaux Jean Rouxel (IMN), Nantes, France ([email protected]) Gagan Choudhary, Gem Testing Laboratory, Jaipur, India ([email protected]) Christopher M. Breeding, GIA, Carlsbad ([email protected]) Dealers also talked about the October 2016 removal of U.S. sanctions on Myanmar, legalizing the import of TUCSON 2017 Burmese jadeite and rubies. According to Edward Boehm of RareSource, the lifting of the ban was widely welcomed, The 2017 Tucson gem and mineral shows drew eager buy- but Myanmar government reforms of the gem mining sec- ers from all over the globe. Although many dealers reported tor have some way to go. Conditions on the ground are lower traffic this year, most were content with the volume much improved, however. Boehm told us new production of business and noted that buyers were “serious.” might take some time to appear, which would impact As in previous years, we identified some strong trends: prices and selection of available goods in the short term. Large multinational companies have significantly im- • Demand for special one-of-a-kind pieces in both pacted colored gemstone mining and distribution over the pearls and colored gemstones last decade. Gemfields’ Kagem and Montepuez mines sup- • Continuing investment by multinational companies ply approximately one-third of global emerald and 70% of in colored gemstone mining and distribution global ruby production, respectively. At this year’s show • A growing focus on ethically sourced gemstones and we were able to interview Gemfields CEO Ian Harebottle beneficiation for his perspective on the company’s operations and its • Strong demand for high-end gems and a softening of 2013 merger with luxury brand Fabergé. demand for commercial goods Representing another publicly traded company intend- ing to mine ruby in Mozambique, Christiaan Jordaan of • Continuing importance of the secondary market in Mustang Resources LLC told us about Mustang’s initial the U.S. for exceptional pieces 2016 bulk sampling and exploration activities. The com- • Innovative partnerships emerging between individ- pany hopes to become an important supplier of commer- ual colored gemstone mines, designer cutters, and cial and gem-quality ruby. television merchandisers Marcello Ribeiro of Belmont Group updated us on de- This year’s big story was the emergence of Ethiopia as velopments at the company’s Belmont and Canaan emer- a potentially major source of gem-quality emerald. These ald mines at Itabira, Brazil. He emphasized the importance new gems resemble other schist-hosted emeralds, espe- of sound mine planning through fieldwork and trace-ele- cially those from Brazil and Zambia. Although most of the ment analysis of potential emerald host rocks. material is less saturated and included, dealers are excited David Bindra of B&B Fine Gems confirmed the impor- that the new source also produces fine gem-grade crystals tance of the secondary market for exceptional gems, which of exceptional size, color, and clarity. are in very high demand. He noted less consumption of commercial to mid-grade material. A partnership between Morocco’s Geostone Group and Editors’ note: Interested contributors should send information and illustra- U.S. gem carver Glenn Lehrer illustrates another interest- tions to Stuart Overlin at [email protected] or GIA, The Robert Mouawad ing development. Production from Geostone’s Moroccan Campus, 5345 Armada Drive, Carlsbad, CA 92008. amethyst mine is cut to Lehrer’s high standards in an In- dian factory, featuring a branded designer cut with high GEMS & GEMOLOGY, VOL. 53, NO. 1, pp. 112–142. weight retention. The resulting faceted stones—and fin- ished amethyst jewelry—are sold directly to consumers © 2017 Gemological Institute of America through television merchandising. The approach helps 112 GEM NEWS INTERNATIONAL GEMS & GEMOLOGY SPRING 2017 A C B E D F G H A: 59.28 ct quartz with iron staining. B: 11.77 ct black opal cabochon from Lightning Ridge, Australia. C: 100 ct Mogok ruby crystal with a perfect termination at one end. D: Pyrite at the heart of a 46.98 ct color- less quartz. E: 73.22 ct “diamondback-”- cut tourma line from Afghanistan. F: 4.31 ct pair of matched Burmese pink spinels. G: 49.36 ct purple trapiche sapphire from India. H: 3.61 ct trapiche sapphire from Kashmir. I: 53.77 ct papagoite. Photos by Robert Wel- don/GIA. Courtesy of Rare Earth Mining Co. (A, D, and I); David Humphrey (B); RareSource (C); Stephen M. Avery (E); and Mayer & Watt (F, G, and H). I build a niche for Moroccan amethyst and brings the bene- of science fiction and traditional inlay work is one of the fits of scale to designer cutting, which is usually associated show’s unexpected finds. with unique pieces. Finally, no survey of the Tucson shows would be com- Eternity Emerald’s Arthur Groom shared his rough plete without Paula Crevoshay’s one-of-a-kind designs. emerald buying expertise with us, especially his years of ex- This year, she showcased a bracelet featuring five large perience negotiating with miners in Afghanistan’s Panjshir freeform fire opals, a swallowtail butterfly pin with yellow Valley. He noted that the quality of Afghan emerald is not and black diamonds, an elephant pin with mother-of-pearl realized in the West because large, fine crystals are often tusks, and a stunning cuff bracelet featuring a spectacular damaged by improper blasting and extraction techniques. boulder opal centerpiece. Potentate Mining’s Warren Boyd showed us sapphire Duncan Pay, Andy Lucas, Tao Hsu, production from Montana’s Rock Creek alluvial deposits, Eric Welch, and Albert Salvato including a remarkable 12.61 ct blue sapphire cut from a GIA, Carlsbad 6.37 g rough crystal. Although most of the production has greenish or brownish pastel colors, it reacts well to heat A new discovery of emeralds from Ethiopia. In recent years treatment. Boyd told us bright natural colors are in high Ethiopia has gained considerable attention in the gem trade demand. He showed several suites of fancy sapphires cut for large amounts of high-quality opal from an area near by his client, Americut. Montana’s alluvial sapphire de- Wegel Tena (B. Rondeau et al., 2010, “Play-of-color opal posits will be the subject of an upcoming G&G field report. from Wegel Tena, Wollo Province, Ethiopia,” Summer The trend toward ethical, sustainable business prac- 2010 G&G, pp. 90–105). Apart from opal, emeralds have tices and transparent supply chains is exemplified by Shea- been sporadically mined, near Dubuluk, for more than a han Stephen of Sheahan Stephen Sapphires, Inc. His decade. This deposit is located about 80 km from the company documents and guarantees the integrity of the Kenyan border. Gemfields has been exploring this deposit gems it sells from the mine, through treatment and cutting since July 2015 (Fall 2012 GNI, pp. 219–220). and directly to the customer. A new deposit of high-quality emeralds (see figure 1) Nigeria is an under-documented source of fine rubellite has been found in the rural villages of Kenticha and Dermi, and indicolite tourmaline and predominantly blue basalt- in the Seba Boru district (figure 2). In November 2016, au- hosted sapphire. For this reason, we especially welcomed thor MN and business partner Daniel Kifle visited the local talking to Zoe Michelou, who represented a Nigerian min- trading town of Shakiso, where Ethiopian gem merchants ing company. She updated us on production of these gem- gather to legally buy and sell emeralds that are mined sev- stones from that country’s Oyo, Kwara, and Taraba states. eral kilometers away. Shakiso is located about 160 km Gem paintings, which GIA has documented in Viet- north of the Dubuluk emerald deposit. The mining area is nam and Mogok, made their first appearance at Tucson. divided into a few “associations.” Each consists of a man- Wanlaya Suwannapirom’s Than Thong Arts booth featured ager and several members who control the actual mining an array of art-inspired handmade portraits and miniatures. and distribution of the emerald rough. After the rough has The technique converts otherwise unusable natural gem been sorted, it makes its way first through Shakiso before fragments into valuable art objects and wearable art such as pendants and pins. Gem artist Alexander Kreis showed us a spectacular 27.20 ct freeform tanzanite complemented by a custom ring Figure 1. This suite of untreated emeralds is from a mount made by his mother Sonja, a master goldsmith. new find in Ethiopia’s Seba Boru district. The largest They related the importance of the story behind a jewelry faceted stone weighs 10.64 ct. The largest rough crys- piece for their clients—how details of the stone’s cut and tal weighs 63.12 g. Photo by Robison McMurtry, cour- the ring’s design represent the toil and effort of the Tanzan- tesy of Michael Nemeth Inc. ian miners and imbue the piece with added significance. Fran Mastoloni provided a cultured pearl market up- date, explaining how careful selection and matching of the different cultured pearl types into a range of varied neck- laces help him cater to the market’s desire for distinctive “fashion-forward” yet flexible jewelry. Dealer Bill Vance of Vance Gems exhibited rare gem- quality magnesio-axinites from just one location in Merelani, Tanzania. This material displayed remarkable fluorescence, and we hope to report further on its chem- istry in the near future. We were delighted to find a Southwest-inspired Star- ship Enterprise, handmade by David Freedland of David R. Freedland Jr. Designs in sterling silver. This quirky blend 114 GEM NEWS INTERNATIONAL GEMS & GEMOLOGY SPRING 2017 Red Sea Yemen Atlantic Sudan Ocean Gulf of Aden A B Addis Ababa Ethiopia Shakiso Somalia C D Indian Ocean Kenya Figure 4.